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Wednesday, March 16, 2011

This week my kiddos are out for Spring Break. I know spring is just around the corner, but I can't help myself from thinking about summer as well.You can blame my lingering thoughts of summer on that yummy Mandarin Orange Cake pictured above.

This is my oldest son's absolute favorite dessert. He could probably eat the whole cake all by himself if I left him alone with it. This pretty orange infused cake is the perfect summer treat. Mandarin oranges are baked into a yellow or butter cake mix (I prefer butter).

The frosting is a fluffy cool whip frosting that has the addition of vanilla pudding & crushed pineapple. This light fluffy frosting makes this the perfect summer cake.

You can prepare this Mandarin Orange Cake days in advance of your get together or party. Because the longer this cake sits the better it taste. If you've never had a taste of a Mandarin Orange cake don't you think it's due time? In usual fashion I have included some step by step photos of just how easy this cake is to make. The full recipe is at the end of this post. Enjoy!

Add the cake mix, oil, eggs and mandarin oranges to a large mixing bowl. Place a few of the mandarin oranges aside for garnish (about 6-8 segments). Mix together the cake ingredients using an electric mixer. Pour into two greased and floured round cake pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until cake is golden brown and springs back. Remove from oven and let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool on a baking rack. Frost when cakes are completely cooled.

While the cakes cool, prepare the frosting. Mix the dry pudding mix and un drained pineapple together with spoon. Fold in cool whip until well blended. Add some frosting to the first cake layer.

and spread the frosting to the edges. Add the second cake layer and use the rest of the frosting to frost the sides and the top of cake.

Finish off by garnishing with the remaining mandarin orange segments.

I know summer isn't here yet, but bake this cake and enjoy a slice of summer a bit early.

Directions: Add the cake mix, oil, eggs and mandarin oranges with liquid to a large mixing bowl. Remove 6-8 orange segments and set aside for garnish.Using a electric mixer or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment blend together the cake ingredients. Pour batter into two greased and floured round cake pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes or until golden brown and the cake springs back. Remove from oven and let cool in pans 10 minutes.Remove from pans and cool completely on a baking rack. Frost when cakes are completely cooled.

Prepare the frosting by adding the dry pudding mix and un drained pineapple together in a large bowl and mix with a spoon.Fold in cool whip until well blended. Frost both layers and sides of cake. Garnish with remaining mandarin orange segments. Keep refrigerated before serving.

I make a variation of this cake and it is called "Tropical Fruit Cake" among other names. Yes, I fix mine in a 13 x 9 and it works great. This is one of my favorites too. I sub sweetened with Splenda Dole crushed pineapple, sugar-free vanilla pudding, sugar-free whipped topping and reduced sugar cake mix. It makes it diet and diabetic friendly. Thanks for sharing. BTW, last night I brewed coffee for iced coffee. I strained the coffee this morning and the coffee concentrate fit perfectly in two "recycled" Starbucks frappuccino glasses. I use them to make homemade frappuccino to bring to the office and now I know two are perfect size for storing my coffee concentrate. I love your blog and voted for you today. ~Darlene

I just made this in a 9X13 pan this morning for my daughter's birthday. We are traveling this afternoon and I only have a carrier for the big pan. It turns out fine and has lots of yummy frosting on top :)I keep mine in the fridge, it tastes good cold!

omygoodness! I know this cake as a Mandarin Orange Cake, as well. Let me go ahead and testify to how wonderful this cake is. My mom made this every year for my birthday at my request. I'm a chocolate person on most everything; but this was my very favorite cake. I completely agree that it is better if it's made in advance. Thank you for the wonderful reminder that my mom hasn't made one for me in a number of years and I'm long overdue! :)

oh my gosh! i haven't heard anyone talk about hummingbird cake in forever (i moved to the north to be with my husband and no one here knows anything about good southern food ;) )..i may just have to make him one..and of course, this cake another week!!

I have a possibly stupid question - Do I prepare the vanilla pudding and THEN add the pineapple or do I just mix the pudding powder with the pineapple? BTW - this looks delicious. As always, I know I can come to Mommys Kitchen for a wonderful treat!

I've made this cake more times than I can remember...I found the recipe in our local newspaper. I make it in a 9x13 dish which is what the recipe said to do. Supposedly, according to the news article...the father of Newt Gingrich made it for Connie Chung when she went down to Atlanta, GA to interview the parents of Mr. Gingrich. The father called it "Pig Lickin' Cake". Whenever I make it, it disappears quickly. :) I keep mine in the refrigerator too.

I made this last weekend and it was wonderful! I made it in a 9x13 pan instead though. It is a nice dense cake that has a crisp (if that makes sense) taste! This would be an awesome summer dessert. Everybody loved it! Kristin

This is soooo what I needed to see today!!! We have had nothing but rain for as long as I can remember!! I love the smell of fruit baking!! Thanks for the glimpse of sunshine and thanks for linking to 2 Maids a Baking!!

I have been making this cake for years and I love it!! My mom used to make it and, to us, it's known as "Pig Eatin'Cake" . The name has been explained as, "it's so good, you'll make a pig of yourself" kinda cake! :)

This is a fantastic "summer" cake! I've been making it since I was a teenager........which was not so long ago I like to pretend. ;)I've always heard it called "Pig Lick'n" cake as well and it will certainly cause you to make a pig of yourself if you're not careful. I love how it is versatile enough for a regular diet or a diabetic diet and both still taste great! I've made it in both layers and 9x13 sizes. I have to say the layer cake has a prettier presentation, but the taste is so good, no one will care what it looks like in the end. It's always been a hit at potlucks too.

This is my new favorite cake! YUM is all I can say!! Okay, maybe that's not all I can say..... What I love about this cake is the lightness of it and it's not too sugary like most cakes. I will be making this one a lot! Thanks Tina!!

I am so glad to find you. I am making your sauted green beans as I write. Just picked my first green beans from my first garden and this will compliment them. I can't wait to make your Mandarin Orange cake and loved all the comments. I'm looking forward enjoying your sight.

I made this cake last summer and it was WONDERFUL!!! My whole family loved it. I brought it to work to share and it was a hit. I have passed the recipe on to many others. This is very easy to make and the perfect hot weather treat. It's light and cool and fruity. Doesn't get much better than that! Enjoy! Kristin

I had some leftover cream cheese frosting that I was looking to use. I came across this recipe and decided that they would go together perfectly. I added the pineapple and a bit of orange oil flavoring to my cream cheese frosting. It was heavenly! A huge hit at my family reunion. Thanks for sharing this great recipe!

I made this for my fiance's birthday and he loved it! He hadn't had one in a long time and this is the cake he wanted for his birthday cake. We looked at tons of recipes online for this cake! Some were close, others not so close. Then we found yours and decided to make it. It turned out perfectly! It's now my go to dish to bring anywhere. It wasn't only us that fell in love with it, it was our whole family. As I write this, I'm about make another one, for my Moms birthday. :) Thank you!

I am super excited to try out this cake, im taking it over to church tonight to enjoy a slice and conversate with our church and im sure it will be a big hit. I took the Strawberry Punch Bowl Cake on Sunday and the people at the church loved it. Im so glad for your web page becasue the recipes are so easy to do and on the plus side my husband is happy to try new recipes :)

My Grandma made this cake many years ago! I had totally forgotten about this cake and how good it is:) She used Jiffy Cake mix!! I don't know if they even make Jiffy cake mix anymore~ Thanks for bringing back some awesome memories of my Grandma~Lynn @ Turnips 2 Tangerines

Lynn,They do still make jiffy cake mixes. I buy the yellow cake all the time. They're the perfect size for my cake mix dinner rolls. I love this cake and it's one of my favorites. Always, always better the second day.

I'm pretty sure when my mom makes this she either puts some of the pineapple juice in the batter or she pokes holes in the cake and pours it on the unfrosted cake. She also sometimes adds coconut or chopped pecans to the frosting. So many variations that one could do, but we still call it Pig Pickin cake too.

Love this cake - I am so glad to get the recipe again. I had made it years ago and misplaced the recipe. When I had made it before I split the layers, turning it into a 4-layer cake. Talk about gorgeous presentation - and, of course, you all know how scrumptious it is. Thank you , again, for posting this recipe.

I'd like to make this cake for Easter, but I have doubts as to whether this recipe would work with the new smaller cake mix. I believe there would be a bit too much oil, and too much liquid from the un-drained pineapple and Mandarin oranges. Also, would we still use 3 eggs? Have you tried making this cake with the smaller cake mix? If so, please let us know how it came out, and if you altered the ingredients in any way.

This recipe still works with the new size cake mixes on the market. It is not too much oil or too much juice from the mandarin oranges. I have made this several times with the smaller cake mixes if that helps.

This mandarin orange cake is the same cake I call Out of this World Cake. I have been baking it for over 30 years. It is one of my favorite cakes. It is so moist and tasty.You might want to make extra icing to cover the cake good.